Slow Dancing
by monpretenduevie
Summary: Relationships, much like dancing, are often composed of two steps forward and one step back. In the case of Katniss, she took one giant step back, and then the song ended. Several months after the music died, Peeta is slowly adjusting to being without Katniss, when she unexpectedly dances her way back into his life. - Modern AU
1. Chapter 1 - Nights Like These

**Title:** Slow Dancing  
**Fandom:** The Hunger Games  
**Summary:** Peeta settles down to relax with a few friends at his favorite watering hole, not suspecting that a certain someone will come walking back into his life.  
**Genre: **Romance/Drama  
**Rating:** M for language, alcohol use, and sexual content in later chapters.  
**Spoilers/Warnings:** Modern AU. Characters and themes from multiple THG books.  
**Author Note:** This story was inspired by the song _Slow Dancing_ by Lucero. This fic was intended as a one shot, but I do have plans to continue the story if there is interest. Aside from a few mini-fics that I have written for friends, this is my first attempt at writing for the HG fandom. Feedback and comments are greatly appreciated.

Music by various artists is mentioned regularly in this fic. I created a YouTube playlist if you would like to listen to any songs that you might not be familiar with. The playlist can be found at:

youtube /playlist?list=PLZ1jKRA1QZgCnBs7Tx-f-rMDH4qfjB7kE&feature=mh_lolz

* * *

"Six months. Six months to the day." Peeta said to no one as he idly rocked himself on his front porch swing, listening to a beat up little radio play old country songs. He took a long, deep drag from his cigarette. Despite the cool autumn air, Peeta wasn't wearing a shirt. The cool breeze bringing goose bumps to his flesh helped to remind him that he was still alive, this wasn't a dream, and that everything he was experiencing was real.

He blew out the smoke clouding his lungs. Coughing slightly, Peeta brought his right hand to his chest, over the mockingjay he had tattooed there about a month before he and Katniss broke up. Peeta had brushed off his brother's advice to never get a tattoo that reminded him of someone that wasn't family.

"Girls come and go, bro. Tats are for life." Peeta snorted at the memory and then took another pull from his cigarette.

Peeta never regretted getting the tattoo. He wanted Katniss in his life, for the rest of his life. She was everything to him. He was hurt beyond words when he found out that Katniss and Gale had kissed. Peeta tried to understand, be patient, knowing she and Gale had a history together, that he was practically family to the Everdeen clan. He was even willing to work through her feelings for Gale, hoping it was just a momentary lapse in judgment. Katniss felt that maybe they should take a break so she could figure things out. Katniss "figuring things out" involved not returning phone calls and cancelling plans. When it became clear that she was spending a lot more time with Gale, Peeta decided to back off completely, hoping that maybe she would eventually come to him.

Peeta found himself humming to the song playing on the radio, Garth Brooks' _More Than A Memory. _He loved the song, but right now it hit a little too close to home. Peeta sat up, flicked his cigarette off into the grass, and then reached over to the radio, switching it off. Getting up to stand, Peeta winced as his left knee cracked and popped. It still hadn't healed completely from the motorcycle accident he had on the night they had broken up. Peeta thanked whatever angel might have been watching over him that he had remembered to wear his helmet that night. If he hadn't he might have been in worse shape than a hyper-extended knee, a concussion and a nasty case of road rash.

He wished his Triumph Bonneville had fared as well as he had. It had been trashed, but not totaled. The perks of family owning a motor sport performance shop meant parts for cost, and access to all of the equipment he needed to do repairs. While his job happened to be bodywork and painting customer vehicles, Peeta had become handy with a wrench over the years.

The majority of his weekends since the accident were spent repairing and improving the Triumph. Peeta had finished the repairs to the bike last week and the new paint job on the bike today. It was a two-toned black and scorched orange paint job that he had designed himself with great pride. Now that he had his own blood, sweat and tears in the Triumph, he truly felt like it was a part of him and better than new.

_Sitting around on a Saturday night, listening to old sad songs on the radio isn't going to help_, he thought to himself. He walked inside, and grabbed his white t-shirt off the back of a chair. It had a small amount of brake fluid on it, but doubted that anyone would notice if he tucked it in. A quick trip to the bathroom to clean up, and then he was out the door, helmet and jacket in hand.

The Triumph roared down the highway, it was the first time Peeta had gotten a chance to really open up his bike and get a measure of the improvements he had made. At some point he could have sworn that he saw blue lights behind him, but the cop had either given up or was going after someone else. Twisting the throttle a little more, he made his way in to town.

The parking lot outside of Haymitch's bar was packed, with a line forming at the door. Despite the fact that from the outside the place looked like your generic, dingy hole in the wall bar, the inside was fairly respectable. It was well lit, clean, had comfortable bar stools, and a very nice selection of beer and liquor at reasonable prices. The pool tables were in good shape, and the jukebox was never so loud that you had to shout in order to have a conversation. The only thing that seemed to match with the outside of the building was the small, scuffed up dance floor with a tiny disco ball overhead.

Peeta waited in the queue, chatting with the various people in line to kill time. Once he made it to the front of the line, he saw that it was Johanna Mason working the door.

"Hey there, stranger." She said in greeting. "ID, please."

"Hi yourself, Johanna. Also, you know for a fact that I'm 25." Peeta said grinningly, as he reached for his wallet.

"Oh, really? It must be that sweet little baby face of yours." she quipped, grabbing his ID with one hand and ruffling his hair with the other. Peeta groaned in protest, as he smoothed his hair back down.

"Trust me, Helmet Hair. It's an improvement." Johanna handed Peeta's ID back to him, and with a flourish, waved her hand towards the door.

The smell of tobacco, warm bodies, along with a variety of perfumes and body sprays greeted Peeta as he crossed the threshold to the building. The jukebox was cranking out the chorus to Def Leppard's _Pour Some Sugar On Me_, which the majority of the bar was belting out, off key. Peeta walked up to Haymitch who was working behind the bar.

"Hey, Haymitch. Three shots of Jack, and a Coke, please." Peeta requested.

Haymitch raised an eyebrow at Peeta. "Good to see you. You look like you're doing better since I saw you last, but if that's how you're starting off the night, you might as well go ahead and hand me your keys."

Peeta didn't protest as he placed his keys on the bar. Haymitch quickly scooped them up, putting them in his pocket as he turned around to grab a bottle of Jack Daniels.

"So, what brings you to my fine establishment this evening? It has been a while," Haymitch said over his shoulder.

"I had to get out of the house. I was starting to get kinda down, it's been six months today since Katn…" Peeta trailed off. Haymitch nodded, and gestured in a manner that suggested he skip that part. Peeta shook his head briefly, and continued.

"Uh, anyway. I finally finished all of the repairs to my bike, so I thought I'd take her out for a spin, and then I came here. I was hoping I'd run into some friendly faces," Peeta said, as he glanced around the bar.

Haymitch placed four shots and Peeta's Coke on the bar.

"I'm not much for friendly faces, but you're always welcome here," Haymitch said as he clapped Peeta on the shoulder. Grabbing one of the shots, Haymitch tipped the glass slightly towards Peeta. Peeta grabbed one of the shot glasses before him, and clinked it against Haymitch's.

"Cheers," they both said, as they tossed the shots into the back of their throats. Peeta picked up the remaining two shots and his Coke, and then sat down at one of the booths.

The jukebox was now playing some pop song from the 90's. Peeta watched as a group of girls gathered on the dance floor, leaving their dates standing awkwardly at the bar, trying not to mumble the lyrics under their breath. Peeta sipped on his Coke and enjoyed the spectacle off the girls singing and dancing.

"I'll tell you what I want, what I really, really want." Peeta jumped slightly and looked towards the female voice that called his attention. As he turned, he realized his face was exactly at chest level of the girl before him. He stopped himself short to avoid a collision.

_How did she get so close without me noticing?_ Peeta pushed himself back in the booth a little to give himself some space. The girl standing before him was tall, had long blonde hair, and was wearing a sheer golden dress. The way the light overhead was shining around the booth Peeta realized the dress was not her only article of clothing that was somewhat see-through.

_Eyes, eyes, eyes, eyes_, Peeta thought for the heartbeat it took to compose himself. Looking up into her emerald green eyes, Peeta smiled as he replied, "Well, Glimmer, I take it that you really, really, really want to zigazig ah."

Glimmer took his reply as an invitation to slide into the booth next to him.

"Ten points for you," Glimmer said as she placed her margarita on table. "I haven't seen you in here for quite a while. How have you been?"

"I keep hearing that. I guess I should get out more." Peeta paused to gather his thoughts. His brothers would have told him to not to mope about a girl, especially to another girl when it looks like she might have plans for you later. Peeta wasn't particularly interested in whatever plans Glimmer might have for him, but decided at the very least that the not moping part was decent advice. He was trying to get his mind off of Katniss, not talk about her.

Glimmer nodded, waiting for Peeta to continue.

"Well, I've been okay, I guess. It took me a while to heal up from the accident a few months ago. With my bike wrecked, I haven't had much of a chance to get down town without going with one of my brothers. I finally finished repairing my bike last week and I finished with the paint today.

It's a nice night, and I didn't feel like sitting around the house by myself. I thought I'd take the bike out and come down here. I was hoping I'd run into some people I knew, and we could find something to do."

Glimmer pressed in close to Peeta, sliding her right arm behind his shoulders. With her other hand, she grabbed one of Peeta's shots sitting on the table, quickly knocking it back. She brought her lips next to Peeta's ear.

"If you want to go back to my place, I'm sure we could find something to do," she then leaned back with a seductive smile on her face. Her hand slid back from behind Peeta, running down the length of his arm, and down to his hand, where she slowly stroked his index finger before returning her hand to her drink.

Peeta coughed slightly, covering his mouth. He prayed that he wasn't blushing.

"Not that I don't mind the direct approach, but wouldn't Cato take issue with me going home with you?" Peeta said in an attempt to deflect her offer.

Glimmer shrugged, "He's out of town this weekend, and what he doesn't know won't hurt him."

_I somehow doubt that_, Peeta thought to himself.

She sighed a little and then continued, "Besides, he's not really my boyfriend. We just like to fu…"

Glimmer was cutoff by a cry of "Away with thee, vile temptress!"

Peeta and Glimmer turned, looking up to see Finnick Odair standing next to the booth, making shooing motions with his hands. He was in the company of Annie Cresta and Delly Cartwright.

"Oh screw you, Finnick. Like you have any room to talk," Glimmer spat.

Finnick clutched at his chest, as though he was deeply wounded "Oh, your words, they sting me so." He let out a chuckle and continued. "Go on, Glimmer. I haven't seen Peeta in ages, his ass is mine tonight." That comment drew raised eyebrows and incredulous looks from everyone within earshot, Peeta included.

"Uh, Finnick…" Peeta started to say.

Finnick cut Peeta off as the connotations of what he had just said clicked in his head. He put his arm around Annie as he said, "Dude. You. Me. Pool. Rematch. I lost thirty bucks to you last time, and I want it back."

Peeta grinned, "Not that you need it."

"Not the point. I want a rematch."

Peeta considered the request for a moment. It was an easy way for him to get out of his conversation with Glimmer, plus Peeta enjoyed taking Finnick's money.

"Alright, a rematch it is." He looked at Glimmer. "Sorry, I think this is going to be a catch up with everyone kind of night."

Glimmer nodded, Peeta could tell that she was trying not to look disappointed. She slid out of the booth and bent over to pick up her drink. He tried not to notice the amount of cleavage that she was putting on display. From this angle, he definitely could tell that it wasn't just a trick of the light that made her bra look so sheer.

Peeta quickly redirected his attention to her face, "It was nice catching up with you. I hope the rest of your evening is enjoyable."

Glimmer barely managed to smile, "You too, Peeta." She then turned to walk away, but not before shooting Finnick a death glare.

"Annie, Delly, it's great to see you!" Peeta said with a smile.

Delly returned the smile, "I'm so glad that you're feeling well enough to come out. I thought today might be a little rough on you, and you'd stay home."

_Delly, you know me so well_, Peeta thought to himself.

"I considered that, but in the end I had to get out of the house, and now I'm really glad I did," Peeta replied.

"There was talk about playing Pool? Lets play in teams. I want some of Finnick's cash too," Delly said with great delight.

That was Annie's cue to chime in, "You're not going to see a dime, if I have anything to say about it. Game on."

Finnick clapped his hands together, "Well, I think that settles how the teams are going to be split." Finnick looked down at the table, "Oooh, shots!" he reached for Peeta's lone remaining shot and drank it down before Peeta had time to stop him.

"Hey, I was going to drink that," Peeta protested.

Finnick brushed the comment aside. "I'll get us another round of drinks. Ladies, if you'd be so kind as to select a Pool table. Peeta, you go feed the jukebox."

Everyone scattered to do his appointed tasks. Peeta browsed the songs available on the jukebox for a few minutes before he shoved two dollars in and selected his four songs. Finnick came buy a moment later, his arms full of drinks. Peeta followed him over to the pool table that Annie and Delly had selected.

Finnick passed out drinks and shots to everyone at the table.

"What shall we toast tonight to?" asked Annie.

Finnick raised his shot glass, "We may not always get what we like, just as long as we don't get what we deserve!"

"Screw that, here's to taking all of Finnick's cash," cheered Delly.

"I'll drink to that," said Peeta, clinking his shot glass with Delly's.

Annie called to Finnick, "Let's get `em, honey."

Finnick nodded in agreement. "Down the hatch!"

Peeta made a face after drinking his shot. "What the hell did I just drink?"

"A Red Headed Slut, they're good to the last drop. Just like me." Finnick said with a grin. "Okay, who's racking and who's cracking?"

Peeta pulled a quarter out of his pocket, "Annie, would you like to call it?"

Annie nodded, and Peeta flipped the coin into the air. "Heads!" The coin landed on the Pool table, tails up.

"Okay, Delly. We won the toss, should we go first or let them?" asked Peeta.

"Lets go first, but I want you to break. I'm not very good at doing that."

"Alrighty. Finnick, rack `em."

Peeta walked over to the side table and took a cautious sip from the glass that Finnick had brought him.

"Long Island," said Finnick when Peeta looked at him questioningly.

"Not bad, but I'm buying the next ro…" Peeta trailed off.

Not waiting for Peeta to finish his statement, Finnick retorted "It puts the booze in its mouth. It does this whenever free drinks are offered."

Not getting a reply from Peeta made Finnick look up. This caught the attention of Annie and Delly as well. Peeta was seemingly frozen in place, starring towards the entrance of the bar. Finnick looked over his shoulder in an attempt to discover what had caught Peeta's full attention.

"Shit. Not tonight," Finnick muttered as he rubbed a hand down his face.

Katniss Everdeen had walked through the door, and much like Peeta, had stopped dead in her tracks as they locked eyes. Rue pulled on Katniss' arm, dragging her over to a booth close to the bar. She purposefully sat Katniss down in the bench facing the door, and away from Peeta.

Finnick waved a hand in front of Peeta's face. "Peeta, you're going to set Katniss' hair on fire if you stare any harder."

The comment seemed to snap Peeta out of his reverie. He blinked a few times and then blew out a sigh. "Yeah, you're right. She's here, there's nothing I can do about it, and I just need to deal." Peeta looked around the bar for a moment and saw Haymitch walking towards Katniss and Rue, a pitcher of beer and three glasses in hand.

"C'mon, Peeta. We've got a game to play," Delly urged.

He nodded in agreement, took a large gulp from his drink and then lined up his opening shot. As three striped balls landed in different pockets, Lucero's _Tonight Ain't Gonna Be Good_, this first of his song selections, started to play on the jukebox.

The next three hours went by quickly. Peeta and Katniss made sure not to be in the same part of the bar at the same time. They did on occasion catch each other stealing a glance, but otherwise tried not to acknowledge the presence of the other person. Contrary to his expectation, Gale never showed up. Delly had gone over to talk to Katniss during a break between games. From everything Peeta could tell, the conversation had been short, but polite.

He drunkenly walked up to the jukebox to put a few more quarters into the machine. It was playing the last few notes of Nina Simone's _Do I Move You, _and then moved on to _Wicked Games _by The Weeknd_._ He was standing behind Glimmer who was going through the list of songs on the touch screen. She must have seen his reflection in the monitor because she said "Sorry, it looks like you probably won't get to listen to whatever you plan on playing before closing time. I'm not sure if it'll even get to mine, but I've got a few songs queued up and we've got less than half an hour before Haymitch kicks us out of here."

"Oh, okay. Thanks for letting me know." Peeta turned, weaved himself through the crowd and back towards his pool table.

Finnick was trying to pull off some kind of ridiculous trick shot that was more likely to send the cue ball flying across the room than get one in a pocket. Just as he predicted, Finnick sent the cue ball soaring onto the booth table next to him. The ball bounced on the table one time, ricocheted off a pint glass and landed in an empty pitcher of beer.

"Impressive, but it doesn…" Peeta didn't get to finish his taunt because he suddenly found himself hurtling towards the floor after being shoved from behind. His bad knee, eight drinks and a couple of shots didn't go very far in terms of helping Peeta get up with haste. He grabbed the edge of the pool table and clumsily hauled himself up. Once he was standing again he saw Finnick squared off with a rather large fellow wearing a San Diego Chargers Jersey, with the number 5 emblazoned on it. Finnick was brandishing his pool stick around as a diversionary tactic to hold the man at bay. Annie had grabbed a beer bottle from somewhere and slipped behind Number 5. She flipped the bottle in her hand and was reaching her arm back when Peeta found himself jumping between Number 5 and Finnick.

Peeta's hands and arms went up in a gesture of pacification. "Hey, big guy. Can't we talk about this?"

Number 5 looked down at him, "Make it quick, Blondie, because I really want to punch this pretty boy's teeth in."

"Look, I've taken plenty of this guy's money tonight playing pool. He was desperate to get some of it back and not embarrass himself in front of his girl. You know how it is, and he tried throwing a Hail Mary with that last shot. How about I buy you another pitcher and we call it even?"

Number 5 thought it over for a second. "Alright, but none of that cheap shit you kids drink these days."

"Anything you want, man. C'mon, let's go get it," said Peeta, motioning towards to bar.

As they walked to the bar Peeta took a moment to glance back towards Finnick. He had slung his arm around Annie. "I love you," said Finnick. Annie replied with "I know," and then kissed him on the cheek.

Peeta placed the empty pitcher of beer on the bar and tried to get Haymitch's attention. Haymitch eyed the pitcher and then looked at Peeta.

"Just in time. What can I get you?"

Peeta placed a $20 on the bar. "A pitcher of whatever Number 5 here wants."

Haymitch nodded, then reached under the bar and pulled out a microphone. "Last call, last call. Last call for alcohol."

Peeta made his way back over to Finnick. "I think that pretty much called game."

Finnick nodded in agreement. "Well, you and Delly won most of them. Good job. Delly, you're a much better shot than you let on. Nice hustle." Delly beamed at the compliment and gave a mock curtsey from where she was sitting.

The jukebox changed songs, and Annie raised an eyebrow. "Nina Simone, The Weekend, and now _Glory Box_ by Portishead? Wow, somebody is trying real hard to get someone in the mood."

"Well, it's working on me. Let's dance, I love this song," said Finnick as he lead Annie to the dance floor.

Peeta shrugged, looked at Delly, and questioningly leaned his head towards the dance floor. Delly hopped off of her barstool and teased, "Alright, mister. No funny business and keep your hands where I can see them. I am a lady, and I expect to be treated as such."

Peeta laughed, bowed deeply, tried not to fall over, and then offered his hand. "My good lady, would you offer me the pleasure of your company for this dance?"

They walked over to the dance floor and Peeta joined hands with Delly as if they were at an Eighth Grade prom, and shuffled his feet back and forth for the rest of the song. The disco ball turned on as the jukebox started playing Sade's _No Ordinary Love_. Peeta felt a tap on his shoulder and in a familiar female voice he heard "Delly, do you mind if I cut in?"

Delly let go of Peeta. "Not at all, I think my toes need a break from being stepped on." Before Delly walked away, she gave the woman behind him the universal sign for "I've got my eye on you."

"K..Ka…Katniss?" stammered Peeta.

"Is this okay with you?" she asked, coming around to face him.

"I, I don't know," sighed Peeta. "Let's just see how this goes."

Katniss put her arms around Peeta's neck; his hands went to her waist automatically. She pulled him closer as they started to move.

Peeta managed to lose himself to the music and his thoughts._ How can this be everything I do and do not want at the same time? I mean, I know this exactly what I want, but once she walks out that door, how is it not going to wreck me? _He blew out an audible sigh and opened his eyes. Everyone around was gawking at the two of them; the only exception was Rue, who had a little smirk on her face. She winked at him and took a sip from her can of Sprite.

Peeta looked down at Katniss. She had her eyes closed, a slight smile on her face. The starts shining from the disco ball reminded him of their late night rides on his bike to no place in particular. She winced just a little and opened her eyes.

"I can tell the accident hasn't made you a better dancer." She laughed lightly.

Embarrassed, Peeta apologized for stepping on her foot. "No, not really. Not to mention all of the drinks and the scuffle from earlier isn't exactly helping. Sorry about your foot."

"It's okay. Things wouldn't be the same if you didn't step on my toes at least once." She took her arms from around his neck and slid them under his arms, around to his back. She pulled him even closer and then laid her head on his chest. Peeta felt her inhale deeply. "You still smell like motor oil and cologne, but I think the cologne is new?"

"It's Euphoria by Calvin Klein. It was a gift from Finnick." Peeta tried to impersonate Finnick as he said "It's perfect for the single man out on the prowl."

Katniss laughed. "Why am I not surprised Finnick would say something like that about a cologne? I like it though." She took in another deep breath.

"Well, it _is_ Finnick. He's just looking out for me, even if his methods are a little odd at times."

Katniss nodded as they continued to dance. _Drive_ by The Cars was coming to an end on the jukebox.

Katniss lifted her head from Peeta's chest. "This song is making me want to ask who is going to drive you home tonight. You are in no shape to drive right now."

"You're right. Haymitch has the keys to my bike. I'll hang out here for a while, and hopefully he'll let me have them back before he decides to go home. It's my turn to ask, who is going to take you home tonight?"

"Rue agreed to be my D.D. tonight. Peeta, promise me you won't drive home drunk. I can't take the thought of you getting into another wreck. You scared me half to death when I heard you were in the hospital."

Peeta looked Katniss in the eye. "I'd get Finnick to take me home, but I think he came in a cab. I promise I won't drive home drunk. Scouts honor."

"Okay. I'm going to hold you to that. For now, you should hold me."

Peeta wrapped his arms around Katniss, laid his head on hers, closed his eyes, and tried to keep time with the music. The lyrics from Adele's cover of _I Can't Make You Love Me _were all too moving to him in this moment. Peeta choked back a sob, tried to play it off as a cough, but a tear still ran down his broke the embrace. He could see that her mascara was starting to run.

"God, I knew you looked like trouble the moment I laid eyes on you tonight," she said while grabbing his shirt and pulling him in for a kiss.

The music shut off and the house lights came on an instant later, Peeta jumped as Haymitch's voice boomed over the PA system. "Alright kids, you don't have to go home, but you can't stay here. Thank you for coming out tonight. If you are too drunk to drive, please let me know and I'll be happy to call you a cab. Now everybody out."

Peeta and Katniss both sighed, and looked around awkwardly, the moment lost. Peeta thought it was probably for the best, but wished he could feel her lips on his again.

"Well, this was really nice," Peeta said while shoving his hands in his pockets.

"Yeah, it was, but I have to go." Katniss reached for his face, and with her thumb wiped the tear away. She then quickly kissed him on the cheek, turned and briskly walked towards Rue, who hooked her arm as they walked towards the door.

Finnick walked into Peeta's field of view. Finnick mouthed, "Are you alright?" Peeta nodded. Finnick gave him a thumbs up, pointed at Annie and Delly, then motioned towards the door, indicating that they were leaving. Peeta managed a little wave.

"God damn, that was nice," he said quietly, then shook his head and walked over to Haymitch at the bar. "Tell me you didn't do that on purpose."

"Okay. I didn't do that on purpose." Haymitch said as he slid a shot of Jack across the bar to Peeta.

Peeta picked up the shot and started to bring it towards his mouth, and then stopped. "You know what, I think I'll go to the diner across the street and sober up," he slid the shot back to Haymitch.

Haymitch reached into his pocket then handed Peeta his keys. "Good man. Now get out of here."


	2. Chapter 2 - One More Cup of Coffee

**Title:** Slow Dancing  
**Chapter: **Two

* * *

Peeta walked out of the bar and paused a moment to fish a pick of cigarettes out of his pocket. Leaning against the railing, he lit up and took a long drag. Blowing smoke out of his nose he watched it drift into the distance. He took another puff on his cigarette, wrinkled his nose, and then dropped it, snuffing it out with the heel of his boot.

"Sometimes the things you want aren't as satisfying as you expect, huh? Also, pick up your butt, I just swept there." Johanna was holding a broom, and looking somewhat cross.

"No, I guess not," Peeta said as he bent over to pick up his cigarette butt.

"I warned Katniss that you were inside. I figured she would have turned tail, and gone somewhere else." Johanna chuckled. "I guess that was expecting a little too much, knowing how much she tends to poke things she shouldn't with sticks."

"I appreciate you trying to warn her."

Johanna smirked, "I didn't do it for you."

"Didn't say you did. I just said I appreciated you trying to warn her. " Peeta looked longingly across the parking lot at his motorcycle, wishing he was sober enough to drive. He wanted to get the hell out of here. "Well, I'm going to grab something to eat. I'll see you around."

"Don't be a stranger, I haven't had much in the way of entertainment here in a long time," Johanna called after Peeta, as he walked across the street.

Greasy's Diner was always packed this time of night. Peeta stopped to read the sign listing the special of the day "Best Dogs in town! We're proud of our wieners! ½ lb. all beef hotdog for only $1.99" Peeta wished that "best dog in town" part was true. No one came here for the food. It was more like a waiting room for people to sober up in that somehow managed to have decent coffee.

Peeta walked inside, gave his name to the hostess and waited to be seated. He started to hum along to an acoustic rendition of _Africa_ by Toto that was playing on the radio in the cook's window when he noticed the young man sitting in a chair next to him suddenly turn green. _Oh man, that kid is going to hurt tomorrow_, Peeta thought as he took a few steps to the side, hoping he didn't get puked on.

When he was finally seated, Peeta ordered coffee, and a glass of water. As he pored over the menu, Peeta tried to figure out something to order that had a minimal chance of making him sick. The waitress returned with his drinks and he ordered a half-stack of pancakes and two eggs, over medium. Peeta dumped two creamers and six packs of sugar into his coffee. Stirring his coffee, the events of the night started to play back through his mind.

_Why did Katniss avoid me all night, just to come up and ask me to dance? Why'd it have to be a set of steamy songs when she asked me? She's the one who left me, why did she start crying? Why did she say I looked like trouble? I didn't do anything. Did she actually try to kiss me on the mouth after saying that, or am I imagining things? _Peeta was snapped out of his reverie by the arrival of his food; the eggs were over cooked, but the pancakes weren't too bad.

Peeta drained the last bit of his coffee, asked for a refill, and then got up to find the restroom. He saw Glimmer sitting in a booth close to one of the exits. She was listening to something on her iPhone and ignoring her food. When Peeta got closer he could see that her eyes were red, looking close to tears. He figured between the upset look on her face and the headphones that she didn't wish to be bothered. He tried to slip by unnoticed when she looked at him, and pulled her earbuds out.

"Hey, Peeta."

"Hi Glimmer." Peeta looked around, not sure what to say next.

"Would you like to sit down?" Glimmer asked tentatively.

"Sure, but um, let me hit the head first. I'll be back in a sec."

Peeta returned a minute latter. He flagged down his waitress and requested another cup of coffee. "So, uh… I don't mean to pry, but are you okay?"

"Oh, yes. I'm fine. I was listening to some of the songs that I didn't get to hear back at the bar. I wasn't quite ready to have a reaction to them."

"So you did get to hear some of the things you requested?"

"Yeah, the last two songs were mine. I'm sorry if that made an awkward situation for you and Katniss. "

Peeta shrugged, and then took a sip of coffee. "Don't worry about it. I'll be okay, I think."

"It wasn't intentional, Peeta. Katniss, on the other hand, I can't be so sure about. Not that it's any of my business, but I think what she did was a little cruel."

Peeta cocked his head to the side and put his coffee cup down. _I guess I could use an outside opinion on things_. "How so?"

"Katniss was in line at the juke box before me. She goes and plays some slow, sexy songs, and then ambushes you on the dance floor. A slow dance with a former lover is never just a dance, it's testing the waters to see how far into your comfort zone they can get. Then pulling you in for a kiss, which Haymitch ran a rather epic cockblock on. Then she kissed you on the cheek and ran off.

Given that as far as I know, she and Gale are still…" Glimmer pauses for a moment, and motions her hands in the air, "seeing each other. She's either fucking with you, pissed at Gale and getting back at him through you, or she's more confused about what she wants than she might be aware of.

Even though things went south between the two of you, I think you still mean a lot to her. That being the case, I would rule out deliberately trying to fuck with you. I think that would also apply to the getting back at Gale thing, but I can't be that certain."

Peeta took a deep breath, blowing it out heavily through his nose, "Yeah, I don't think she'd be that mean to me on purpose. From my perspective, things never were bad between us. She just couldn't…" Peeta let his words trail off.

Glimmer placed her hand on Peeta's, "I'm sorry. I really am. I'm not saying this to make you uncomfortable. I just think you might need an outside opinion that also noticed a few things that you might not have."

Peeta nodded. "It really is appreciated. Difficult to hear, but appreciated. I know if I sat here by myself all night I'd probably over think the situation to death. It's nice to have someone to talk with."

"Anytime, Peeta. I know we aren't exactly close, but sometimes that makes it easier to talk to someone about what's troubling you," Glimmer said, with a little more empathy than Peeta was expecting.

"Speaking of talking about things that are troubling, what's up with you? Now that I know the songs by the Cars and Adele were yours, and the way I came across you here, I'd say it's my turn to help you out if I can."

"That's very sweet of you to offer. Are you sure you want to hear me talk about another guy?"

Peeta shrugged, "It's not a problem at all."

"Okay. Do you remember my comment about Cato not really being my boyfriend from earlier?"

Peeta nodded.

"Well, that's true. For a while it seemed like we were a couple in everything but name. We weren't just sleeping together. He actually seemed like he was courting me. He did the whole bring me flowers, cook me dinner, take me out to places kind of thing. I know he's known for being a macho asshole, but he can be sweet.

It just took me a while to realize that he was just going through the motions that he thought were required to get me in bed. It was mostly unnecessary, because, well, he's a fantastic lay, until recently, anyway. He's so distant when we have sex now, he might as well be masturbating with my vagina. I guess he just figured out that he didn't have to put on a show in order to get what he wanted. If it had been that way from the start, I suppose it would have been one thing. A girl has needs, you know? For him to make the sudden change a couple of weeks ago, well it hurts.

I knew that he didn't actually want to be my boyfriend, but the way he was acting early on suggested otherwise. I was hoping he'd change his mind, but in the mean time, it was enough for me. At some point along the line I started to have feelings for him. Between Cato not returning them and suddenly acting like a different person towards me, it's just wearing me thin. Then I think, well I knew he didn't want to be a couple, so why am I so upset about this? I mean, I know he's sleeping with other girls, and it doesn't even bother me in the way his attitude toward me does."

Peeta just looked at her for a moment with a puzzled look on his face. "Wait, you _know_ he's sleeping with other women, and it doesn't bother you?"

"I didn't say that it didn't bother me, it just doesn't bother me in the same way as his attitude does. I haven't slept with anyone else. When I'm completely single, I'll admit to going out and enjoying myself, but once I start seeing someone on a regular basis, I stick to that person. We aren't officially a couple, and I think between that and because of what I do for a living, he doesn't think he has any reason to remain monogamous. I'm not really the jealous type in general, but…"

"_Because of what you do for a living_? Um, what do you do for a living?" Peeta asked.

Glimmer looked around, "I don't mind letting you know, but I'd prefer not to talk about it in public."

Peeta nodded, "Okay, no problem. So, uh, how do you know he's seeing other people? Has he told you?"

Glimmer shook her head. "No, but just based on past experience and some other things I've noticed, I'm fairly certain he is. I can smell perfume from other women on him some times. Others, he's had a little bit of lipstick on him that he didn't wipe off entirely. Or there's him suddenly canceling plans, then he'll invite me over the next day, and I'll see a condom wrapper in the trashcan in his bathroom. It's stuff like that."

"Oh, well, um, I guess that's pretty good evidence then," said Peeta. "Jeeze, what couple of happy people we are. "

Glimmer nodded grimly, pushed a button on her phone and looked at the display. "It's about 3:30. Are you okay to drive yet?"

Peeta shook his head. "I could probably manage walking in a straight line, but that's not good enough for a motorcycle. I've got a lot of twisty roads to go on in order to get home. I don't want to risk it yet, considering what happened to me last time. If you want to go home, that's fine. I'll just hang out here for a while longer until I'm sober."

"Okay, just checking. I was actually curious if you wanted to go back to my place for a while, we could watch a movie, or keep chatting until you sobered up. I can drive you back when you're ready, or you can crash on my couch if you get tired. I don't mind either way. I just don't think it would do either of us any good to be alone with our thoughts tonight, but I'd like to get out of here."

Peeta thought about it for a moment. _I guess it would be okay to go back to her place. I'd prefer to have someone to talk to rather than be left to sit here and think about Katniss until I drive myself mad. Hopefully this isn't just an attempt to get me alone. I've actually enjoyed talking with Glimmer, a movie and conversation won't hurt. So what if she's trying to get me alone, where's the harm in that? I'm lonely, she's lonely… No, no, just settle down for a moment; take the offer at face value before you start jumping to conclusions._

"Um, Peeta?"

This broke Peeta out of his thoughts, he realized he was taking a while to answer," Oh, sorry. Sure, let's get out of here." Peeta waved down the waitress and asked if they could get their checks. When the checks arrived, Peeta started to reach for his wallet when Glimmer grabbed the check out of his other hand, and then put a twenty-dollar bill on the table. Peeta started to protest when Glimmer cut him off.

"It'll be faster this way. Just think of it as my way of saying thanks for the conversation, if you've got a problem with a lady paying your bill." Glimmer gathered her things and pulled her keys out of her purse, "Lets go, my car is parked out back."


	3. Chapter 3 - Sweet Dreams

**Title:** Slow Dancing  
**Chapter:** Three  
**Rating:** M  
**Genre:** Romance/Drama – Modern AU  
**Chapter Characters:** Peeta Mellark, Glimmer  
**Spoilers/Warnings:** Language, sexual content  
**Chapter Summary**: "_This doesn't mean you love her any less."_  
**Author's Note: ** There will be a certain part of this chapter that I know will probably not be popular with many of you. I ask that you please finish the chapter, I promise it's not as bad as it might initially look.  
Happy Holidays and Finals Week! Due to school and family obligations the next chapter will probably not be up until the middle of next week.

* * *

Peeta followed Glimmer out the door of Greasy's Diner, and around back to the parking lot. Glimmer pushed a button on her key chain and Peeta saw the lights flash on a silver BMW 1-Series convertible.

He gave an appreciative whistle. "The Beamer is yours? Nice!"

"Thank you very much. I worked hard to get it, and harder to keep it," Glimmer said as she opened the door.

Peeta checked his boots for dirt before he slid in to the passenger seat. "How much did this put you back, if you don't mind me asking."

"About fifty-five, and it's worth every penny. " Glimmer plugged her iPhone into the dock on the car's center console, started the car and began to pull out of the parking spot. "It's a nice night, do you want the top down?" He nodded, and then buckled his seat belt.

The Kaiser Chief's _Love's Not A Competition_ started playing on the stereo and she tapped a button on her steering wheel to advance to the next song. "Sorry, I left my phone on the sad and mopey music. Let me pull up another play list.

Peeta saw the play list titles scroll by on the large display in the dash. "Guilty Pleasures, huh?"

She smiled mischievously as the opening bars to Erasure's _A Little_ _Respect_ started to play.

"Oh, god, no!" Peeta exclaimed, as he clamped his hands over his ears. "This is gonna be stuck in my head for the rest of the night." He quickly began humming in an attempt to drown out the music.

"Oh, you want something that's going to stick in your head all night? I can do that." She advanced the play list and the sounds of synthesized string instruments came out of the speakers.

"I haven't heard this in…" he paused, and cleared his throat. "Hey, hey. Bye, bye, bye." Peeta began bouncing in his seat to the time of the music.

She burst with laughter. "Oh, my god. You know the lyrics."

"Of course I know the lyrics. It's `N Sync, everybody knows the lyrics to this." He continued to sing as they drove. Her laughter only got worse when he picked up the hairbrush that was on the floorboard, and used it as a microphone to serenade her with.

They pulled into the driveway of Glimmer's townhouse a few minutes later.  
"Peeta, I mean this in the nicest way possible, but don't give up your day job for a singing career," she said while turning off the car.

Peeta laughed, "No worries there, besides I'm a much better at playing guitar."

"A guitar player?"

He chuckled, "Well, I wouldn't really say I could play guitar either. Katniss tried to teach me, but I could never get the hang of it. I'm just better at guitar than I am singing."

"Interesting. I play the cello. I occasionally fill in for a string quartet to play at parties and formal occasions." She grabbed her purse they got out of the car.

"It's my turn to be impressed," said Peeta.

"Surprised there's more to me than a slinky dress and innuendo?"

He stopped walking, "Glimmer, that's not what I was trying to say. I was just saying I was impressed. My mother made me take violin lessons when I was a kid. I know it's not really the same thing, but I hated it."

"Oh, I bet she put you in your Sunday best, bow tie and all, to play for her friends."

"You don't know the half of it." Peeta's phone chimed in his pocket, alerting him to a new text message. He pulled the phone out of his pocket to see who was texting him at this hour of the night.

**Katniss Everdeen _3:52am –  
I'm sorry if that was weird for you, and that I ran off so quickly. I know we…_**

"Really?" Peeta blew out a sigh.

Glimmer gave him a questioning look as she unlocked and then opened the door.

"That was Katniss."

"Oh, and what did she have to say?"

He handed her the phone. "I didn't read the whole thing."

Glimmer touched the alert popup and read the rest of the message.

_**Katniss Everdeen 3:52am -  
I'm sorry if that was weird for you, and that I ran off so quickly. I know we didn't talk for most of the night, but it was really nice seeing you. Call me sometime?**_

"Want some friendly advice? Don't message her back tonight. It's almost 4, she can wait until the morning." Glimmer handed Peeta his phone back. "Personally, I'd turn that thing off."

He turned the volume down and put the phone back in his pocket. "I'm not going to worry about it for now. I need to think a bit before I answer."

Glimmer set her purse down on the kitchen counter and walked to the refrigerator. "May I offer you something to drink? Let's see, I've got OJ, cranberry juice, Coke, ginger ale… or if you'd like a fancy adult beverage, I've got vodka in the freezer."

"Ginger ale would be just fine, thanks." He took off his jacket and placed it on a barstool.

Glimmer poured herself a glass of vodka and cranberry juice, and then made Peeta his drink. "So Peeta, I was curious, how exactly did you and Katniss get together? You two were already an item when I moved to town. That's not too personal is it? I thought if I knew a little more that maybe I could offer a woman's perspective."

He shrugged. "Thanks. Well, um, it's not that interesting of a story. We went to school together. I had a huge crush on her back in high school, but I could never work up the nerve to ask her out on a date.

About a year and a half ago I was doing a parts run for work when I saw her pickup on the side of the road with its hood up. Katniss was poking around trying to figure out what was wrong, so I pulled over. We've got a set of tools in the truck, and I'm pretty handy with a wrench, so I offered to help. It wasn't a big deal, her distributor cap had come loose when she hit a pothole, it took me less than five minutes to get her car running again.

She offered to give me cash to thank me for fixing it, but I refused. Then she asked if she could at least buy me lunch. I hadn't eaten yet, so I took her up on the offer. It was nothing fancy, just a burger and fries. We talked so much that our food got cold before we finished eating. I had to get back to work, so I thanked her for lunch, and before she let me go, she put her number into my phone, and told me to call her.

I called her that evening and asked if she was free Friday night. She said yes, and I asked if she wanted me to pick her up on my bike, or I could borrow one of the shop trucks. She opted for the bike. I told her I'd pick her up at eight, and that was that."

Glimmer sipped on her drink and asked, "So, dinner and a movie?"

"Nah. Dinner and a movie have its place, but it's not really my thing for a first date. I see the object of a first date as taking time to get to know a person. I mean, think about it; you're out for three or four hours, and if you go to a movie, you can't even talk to them for most of that time."

"Where did you end up taking her?"

"I took her to Fun Palace. It's a good way for me to weed people out. If they can't have fun playing mini-golf, racing go-karts, and doing a few rounds of laser tag, it's probably not going to work out. Mini-golf is great for having a chance to talk, and the game can break up any potential awkward silence. Go-karts are just fun, and laser tag is good measure of spirit. Katniss shot me more times in one round than I probably had been hit in the last five times I had gone out there. It was kinda scary. We both got a slice of pizza after laser tag and then I drove her home."

Glimmer raised her eyebrows, "Did you get a kiss at the end of the night?"

He chuckled, "A gentleman never tells."

Glimmer set her drink down on the kitchen counter and stepped close to him, placing a hand on his hip. "And are you a gentleman?"

Peeta smirked, "Most of the time. Though I've been known to not be on occasion." He took a small step back and then leaned against the counter.

Glimmer went back to her drink and asked, "So how does Gale play into this?"

Peeta pursed his lips. "I don't know all the details, but Katniss and Gale's dads were both firefighters and worked at the same station. About six years ago their dads had gone out on a call for a fire and the roof collapsed on top of them. Katniss and Gale became really close after that. Eventually they started dating.

"Gale had signed up for the Army Reserves when he got out of high school. He hadn't done anything other than weekend duty the entire time, so he reenlisted after his four years were over. Gale started using the extra money to help his family out. Two years later, his unit was activated for deployment. Katniss and Gale kept things going long distance while he was in the Middle East, then about two years ago he called her up and said he had slept with someone. She dumped him on the spot, and we started seeing each other a couple of months later.

"Eight months ago Gale finished up his second tour, and he moved back here. Six months ago, well, I'm sure you know the rest." Peeta let out a sigh. "I think I'll have some of that vodka now, if you don't mind."

Glimmer walked to the freezer, "Do you want anything with it?"

"Orange juice would be great."

"Gosh, Peeta. I'm really sorry to hear all of this. It's pretty messed up when you think about it. He cheats on her and she dumps him. Then they have a make out session and didn't tell you about it. You found out about it third hand and she decided to leave you when you wanted to work things out? She really does closure with style, doesn't she?"

Peeta shrugged and shook his head. He then took a long drink from his glass. "I guess."

She squeezed his shoulder. "How about we go sit on the couch and find a movie to watch, something to lighten the mood?"

"That will do me just fine."

Peeta followed Glimmer into the living room and sat down on the couch. She reached into a drawer on the coffee table and pulled out a large and complicated looking remote control.

_Did I just see a string of condoms in that drawer?_

"For streaming stuff that I can bring up on my tv I've got Netflix, Hulu Plus and HBO Go." Getting down on to her knees, she stuck an arm under the table and pulled out three large cd wallets. "These are filled with movies. How about you pick something out while I go change into something more comfortable."

"Alright. Are you in the mood for anything in particular?"

She called back from down the hall, "A comedy? I think we could use something silly."

He poked at a few buttons on the remote, but after a moment set it down and reached for one of the cd wallets. He flipped through page after page of discs when a movie starring Robert Downey Jr. caught his eye. "I think this will do."

She returned a moment later, hair pulled back in a ponytail, wearing a white tank top and pink boy shorts. She was carrying something draped over her arm. "Did you pick something out?"

"Yeah, Kiss Kiss Bang Bang. I really like Robert Downey Jr. and I've wanted to see this for a while. I've heard that it was really funny."

"I love that movie. Val Kilmer's character is really hilarious. Oh, I thought you might want to change out of those jeans so I brought you a pair of sweat pants. They're Cato's, hopefully you don't mind."

"Nah, it's fine," he stood up and took the sweat pants from her. Do you have a place I may change?"

"Here's fine, but my bedroom is at the end of the hall, bathroom is the door on the left."

Motioning like he was going to start taking his shirt off, "Here? If you insist." He grinned. "Bathroom is on the left. Got it," and put his shirt back down.

"Oh, that's not fair. Tease."

"If you consider how see-through your clothing was earlier, it's plenty fair." Peeta laughed as he walked down the hall and into the bathroom, turned on the light and shut the door. He had unbuttoned his jeans when he took notice of a tripod in the corner of the room that had a video camera mounted to it. A long cord was running from the camera and underneath another door in the bathroom, presumably into her bedroom.

He poked his head out of the bathroom door and said down the hall, "Hey, Glimmer? Are there any other cameras in here that I should know about?"

"Oh, shit. Sorry, it's a work thing. I forgot to put it away before I left. It's off and there aren't any other cameras in there."

"Alright, just checking." He shut the bathroom door again and took his jeans off._ Work thing? Ooooookay… That's a new one. I guess that's why she didn't want to talk about it in the restaurant. _

Peeta picked up a perfume bottle, smelled it, then put it to the side so he could have room to put his jeans on the counter. He picked up the sweat pants she had given to him, held them against his waist and looked in the mirror. He thought they looked a little big, and might ride low on his hips, but should other wise stay on.

Coming out of the bathroom a moment later, he walked back into the living room and plopped down on to the couch. "Curiosity is getting the best of me. You said the camera was a work thing?"

Glimmer nodded. "That's correct. I work as a camgirl for a living. I was doing a show before I went out tonight."

"Camgirl? Show?"

She gave him a quirky smile. "You don't spend a lot of time on the net, do you? I guess you could say I'm a model for hire that only works over the Internet via a website that streams video feeds. One of my regulars wanted to watch me getting ready to go out tonight. So I picked out a few outfits, tired them on for him, then I hauled my camera into the bathroom. I took a shower, dried my hair, put on the outfit he wanted me to wear and then put on my make up. My viewers pay by the minute to watch me do these kinds of things, or sometimes I hang out in front of the camera and do whatever I feel like doing for tips.

"You'd actually be surprised how many guys want to watch me to do completely mundane things when they order a private show. I'm more than happy to oblige because that's usually where I make the most money. I can usually tell if it's a new customer that if they make crazy sexual requests that they're probably going to rub one out in five minutes and then log out. It's not worth my time, so I schedule private shows that I know will last a while. Some guys want a girlfriend experience; I ask them about their day, maybe cook dinner, and then we'll pretend to have phone sex. Hell, I even read a guy his favorite book while dressed up as one of the characters once. Other times it's me breaking out my tool chest of toys and masturbating. Just depends on the day and the guy. I've found taking specialized requests for shows builds a lot of loyalty in the regulars, and they can really offset a slow day. You just have to make a clear set of boundaries of what you will and won't do. I'm not going to do something I feel uncomfortable with just to make a few extra bucks.

"It's not glamorous, sometimes it's boring as hell. I have to deal with creepy assholes a lot of the time, but it beats a nine to five job. I'm my own boss, and I work as little or as much as I want to. I've got a pretty loyal set of viewers, so I make really good money, and I can do it from the comfort of my own home."

"So it's just on the computer? You don't actually meet them?" asked Peeta.

"Just on the computer. I'd never meet one of these guys in person. I know a few girls that do, but that's their choice. I don't think it's particularly safe and I like to keep my work life distanced from my private life. I'm really careful not to give out personal details. I actually have the website set up not to list me to anyone in this state and the ones immediately around it. Though I didn't do that until Old Man Snow said he saw me on the "_computer box." _He is such a fucking creeper." She shivered.

"That man gossips more than my mom and her knitting circle." Peeta wrinkled his nose, "That's actually how I found out about Katniss and Gale kissing. He was in the woods behind the park down town, taking pictures of wild flowers when he saw them. It didn't take long for that to spread like wild fire." Peeta picked his drink off of the side table and took a sip from it.

"If he saw you, I guess that's how the rumors of you being a prostitute started to spread." Peeta looked down at his lap, and set his drink back down. "Sorry, I didn't mean…"

"It's okay, Peeta. Most people know he exaggerates and takes pleasure out of ruining people's lives. I'm surprised someone hasn't tried to run him out of town yet, nosy bastard. I guess some people have a problem with a woman enjoying sex. You could go out, bang half the women in this town and it'd be high fives all around from your buddies. All it takes is for a woman to dress in a certain way, then people automatically assume she's a slut, or a whore, or a bad person" Glimmer sighed in frustration.

"Well, I know we aren't exactly close, but I think people have said some pretty unfair things about you. I wish I had known you a little better before tonight or I would have tried to stand up for you, rather than brushing the comments off. I think you're really nice."

She gave him small smile and patted his leg. "Thanks Peeta. I appreciate it." She then picked up the remote off of the side table and pushed the play button. "Okay, movie time."

His phone vibrated, indicating he had received a new message. He ignored it.

Halfway through the movie Peeta started to yawn.

"Getting tired? Me too." She looked at him, "Would you mind if I stretched out a little?"

He shrugged. "Go ahead, I don't mind."

She spread herself out on the couch and rested her head on Peeta's lap. Peeta yawned again and put his hand down on her side and stroked idly with his fingers. He found his head nodding a few moments later.

Glimmer rolled over towards Peeta, her face close to his stomach. He realized that after she had shifted that her shirt had twisted awkwardly, and his hand was now resting just below her left breast, his thumb barely touching along the side. He quickly pulled his hand away and rested it on the back of the couch.

"I guess you're a gentleman after all," Glimmer said through a light laugh.

He could feel heat rise in his cheeks. "Sorry, I didn't…"

She sat up and placed a hand on the side of his face. Her thumb swept down his cheek, "I know, it's okay. It was an accident."

He could smell the little bit of perfume that remained on her. Peeta reached up and gently placed his hand over hers, lightly pulling her wrist closer to his face as he inhaled the scent again. Smiling, he let her hand go and made a little noise that sounded like approval. She let her hand slide down his neck, and it came to rest on his shoulder.

"You like that? It's Forbidden Euphoria by Calvin Klein."

He chuckled, "I'm wearing the regular Euphoria. I really like how the scents compliment each other."

"So you're suggesting we go together well? I'd like to find out.**"** Glimmer said as she leaned in towards him.

_Is she about to do what I think?_

She let her lips brush against his neck, and he let out a ragged breath he hadn't realized he had been holding in. Glimmer kissed his neck, just below the jaw line.

_Yep, she is. Shit. What do I do? _

He took a deep breath, turned his face down towards hers.

_I mean, it's been so long and that felt really, really good._

He kissed her cheek, and worked his way to her mouth. His arms reached around her, down to her hips, fingers kneading at the small of her back. She locked her arms around his neck and pulled herself up to straddle him. As they continued to kiss, she began to rock her hips slowly. His left hand stroked up her back and then buried itself in the hair at the base of her neck, the finger tips of his right hand ran along the inside edge of the back of her shorts.

_How far is this going to go?_

She moaned softly, pressing harder into him. He opened his mouth slightly and her tongue darted inside. She withdrew and playfully nipped at Peeta's lower lip. Peeta tightened the grip on Glimmer's hair and pulled her head back to expose her neck, which he then kissed hungrily. Hiss left hand clawed down her back until it reached the bottom of her shirt and then he slipped it underneath. Right hand followed the left, and they began to trace patterns that he could only see in his mind. Kissing her mouth again, he brought his hands up along her sides, thumbs sweeping along the side of her breasts and then back down again.

He started to slide her shirt up when Glimmer broke off their kiss, leaned back and pulled her shirt the rest of the way off. She then reached for the bottom of his shirt and ran her hands over the toned muscles of his stomach. Reaching down to pull off his shirt, she stopped him by saying, "Let me."

_Oh, well this is a little different…_

Lifting herself off of his lap, standing on her knees, she bent down to kiss him again and ran her fingers roughly through his hair. He trailed his hands down her back, over her bottom and across the back of her thighs. Kissing him one more time she trembled as she felt his nails lightly being dragged up the back of her thighs.

Glimmer pulled Peeta to her chest and ran her hands down his back. She balled her hands into the fabric of his shirt and began to inch it up with her fingers. He kissed Glimmer along her collarbone and worked his way down towards her breasts. She pulled his shirt off, tossed it behind her, and shoved him into the back of the couch.

Lowering herself back down she ran her hands across his chest, over his shoulders, and down his arms. She placed both hands around his wrists and brought them together in front of him. Letting go with her left hand, she lifted his arms above his head and pulled them back behind him with the other. Leaning in close to get more leverage, she held him in place.

He gave her a quizzical look as her left hand caressed his chest. She quirked a smile as her hand drifted lower, down to the hair that started just below his navel and disappeared into his boxers. Her hand pulled at the band of his boxers, she took a peek, grinned like a tiger about to pounce on its prey, and let the band pop back into place.

Testing the strength of her grip, he moved his arms a little. She quickly clamped her hand down, clicked her tongue against her teeth, and waved a finger in his face. Stroking her left hand down his chest, she circled his nipple with her finger, felt it stiffen, and then she pinched it. His back arched and he sucked in a breath between clenched teeth.

_Damn, that hurt. _

"Two can play that game you know," he said defiantly.

She gave him a wicked smile. "But will you?"

In a flash she was on her back, arms restrained above her, secured in place by Peeta's left hand. The ring finger of his right hand circled twice along the edge of her areola. He then slipped her already erect nipple between his index and middle finger. He moved his head down towards her breast, lips hovering closely over his fingers. "I haven't decided." He snapped his teeth once in a teasing manner, and then he flicked his tongue across her nipple. Spreading his fingers wider, he kissed her, and then slid his hand down her breast and to her side. He leaned forward, released her hands, and kissed between her breasts and worked his way down to her ribs, to her stomach, and over each hip.

His fingers pulled gently at the top edge of her shorts and he could see that she was wearing nothing underneath. He kissed her just below her belly button and inched his way lower. His fingers crept inside the hem of her shorts and traced along the line of where her hips and leg met. He kissed along the fabric until he came to a place where it had started to dampen. Moving his mouth a little lower he heard her take a deep breath, and she rotated her hips towards him. He nuzzled into her as she breathed out. She began to breathe harder as he slowly traced the back of a finger down the length of her. He pulled the middle of her shorts aside, and with his tongue he followed the path his finger had just taken. She lifted her hips off of the couch and started to push her shorts down. He reached underneath her, and pulled them the rest of the way off, then set about his task.

As her orgasm began to build her hips started to buck. He did his best to hold her in place as it washed over her to no avail. Glimmer reached down between her legs, ran her fingers through his hair and gently pushed him back. Looking up into her eyes he could see she had as much as she could take and needed a moment to rest. Picking her feet up off of the ground she turned and stretched herself out on the couch as he slid in behind her. Wrapping his arms around her he could feel her tense and relax as aftershocks continued to wrack her body. He held her close, lightly kissing her neck and shoulder from time to time as her breathing slowed to a normal level.

"That was… was… fantastic. Wow, no one has done that to me in a long, long time. Peeta, I really want you, but you're going to have to," her body tensed again and she raggedly breathed out. "Give me just a minute. God, I really needed that."

He smiled to himself. "You're welcome, and it's okay. Take all the time you need. To be honest, I'm not really sure that I'm ready for that."

She turned around in his embrace in order to face towards him. Her hands went to his face and she kissed him, tasting traces of her on his lips and tongue. "You know this doesn't mean you love her any less, right?"

He gave her a wary look. "But Katniss…"

"Isn't here, and she left you months ago because she couldn't figure out how she felt between you and another man." Glimmer softened her tone. "Peeta, we're just two people getting lost in the moment, trying to make each other feel better. It is what it is, nothing more, nothing less. There's no need to have guilt over it, or question where your heart lies."

"I know. It's that this is my first time really doing anything with anyone since her and I… I think it is just nerves."

"It's okay. I understand. Sometimes what the heart wants, what the mind wants, and what the body wants is not the same thing. I don't want you to do anything you don't want to do, and I don't want to do anything with you that you aren't comfortable with."

"I didn't mean to be a buzz-kill."

She placed a finger over his mouth. "It's alright, take a deep breath, and relax."

_I've still got my arms around her, so I guess that I'm okay with what we're doing right now…_

"How about we take it a little slower from here. We can stop anytime you want."

He nodded and kissed her lightly on the lips. After a few minutes he rolled to his back, pulling her on top of him. She slowly kissed her way down his chest, to his stomach, and tentatively over the bulge in his pants. When he didn't protest her hands went to his sides and slid his boxers down, kissing and caressing gingerly at parts of him as they were becoming exposed.

Her hands griped at the base of him and she looked up, locking eyes with Peeta. Chewing at the inside of his lip he reached a hand down to her, caressed her face, and tucked a strand of her hair that had come loose back behind her ear. He nodded, and she opened her mouth.

Peeta awoke with a start and looked around, panicked. His phone was vibrating, rattling the loose change in his jeans. Glimmer was still asleep in his lap but started to stir. When managed to get his breathing under control he then realized all of his and her clothes were still on.

"Oh god, it was just a dream. Jesus" he said, blowing out a sigh of relief.

She clumsily pushed herself up on her elbows and mumbled, "Hmm? Dream? Bad dream?"

"I wouldn't exactly say bad…"

"Oh, okay. You alright?" She plopped her head back down in his lap. He tensed from the impact, and her eyes snapped open and her body went rigid. "Oh. Oh, okay. _That kind_ _of dream." _She started to laugh and accidentally rolled off the couch and onto the floor. It only made her laugh harder.

"Oh god, I'm sorry. It just happened. Shit, shit, sorry, I'm sorry," he blurted out. He reached for a throw pillow in an attempt to hide his erection.

She laughed so hard she was starting to wheeze. Covering her eyes with one hand, she patted his knee with the other. Between laughs she managed to say, "It's… don't worry… happens… not upset…"

Hanging his head in his hands, he groaned in frustration.

Peeta, it's fine. You certainly aren't the first guy to get a boner when he falls asleep with a girl's head in his lap. It's a perfectly natural response of the body. I'm not the type to get upset about something like this, so don't worry about it and laugh with me. It'll be less awkward this way."

He peeked out from between his fingers and let a chuckle escape his lips as his phone vibrated again. She grabbed his jeans off the floor, fished the phone out of the pocket and handed it to him.

**3 New Messages:**

**Katniss Everdeen 3:55 am -  
I'm playing tomorrow night at the Pit. I'd love for you to come out and see me. I start at 9.**

**Finnick Odair 6:15 am –  
Driving home from Annie's and I saw your bike in front of Hey Bitch's place. Thought you might be in Greasy's, but didn't see you there. U OK?**

**Finnick Odair 6:16 am –  
Haymitch… stupid auto-correct.**

Peeta opened up the message from Finnick and sent a reply:  
**"I'm fine. Tell you about it later. Going back to sleep."**

Glimmer put her hands on Peeta's knees and stood up. "I know the timing on this is a little awkward, but I'm going to go sleep on my bed. It's a hell of a lot more comfortable than the couch. You're free to join me if you want. It's a king, so you've got all the space you could want to stretch out if you're not much for cuddles."

Peeta turned and stretched, feeling a few spots along his back pop into place. "Yeah, I think I'll do that. Thanks." Grabbing the pillow, he stood up and followed her down the hall and back into her bedroom. It was full of dark stained mahogany furniture, and a small army of stuffed animals covered half of her four-poster canopy bed. She set to work clearing the stuffed animals off the bed, shoving them over the far side towards the wall.

"Your side is on the left, by the wall." She turned to face him, and snickered when she saw that he still had the throw pillow covering himself. "You want me to help you take care of that? It's no trouble, you look like you're so excited that it wouldn't take me but five, maybe ten strokes tops. " She laughed again, turned around to pull the covers down, and purposefully stuck out her butt. When she had finished she took a glance over her shoulder and saw that he was staring. She smiled to herself and then turned back to face him. "Eyes up here, mister."

Peeta jumped and dropped the pillow. This only elicited more laughter from her. She walked up to him and grabbed his hands, which he tried to pull away. "Alright, stud. Into bed with you."

He climbed onto the bed, pulled the covers up over himself and lay down. As slipped his right arm underneath his pillow, he felt his hand slide through something soft. He began to pull his hand out from under the pillow when he felt it cinch down over his wrist, and stop his momentum. "What the hell?" He pulled a little harder, and whatever he had managed to get his hand stuck in tightened. Lifting his head up off of the pillow, he moved it to the side as he sat up. He found that he had gotten his hand stuck in a silk scarf, one end tied into the slipknot that was currently around his wrist, the other end being anchored to one of the canopy posts. "You've got to be kidding me."

Glimmer peeked her head over his side and let out a little squeak. "Whoops. I thought I had undone the knot." She leaned over and helped him undo the knot. "I guess it's my turn to be embarrassed. Sorry."

"No, no. I think I've got the embarrassment covered for both of us."

She finished untying the knot, rolled back over and turned off her lamp. Patting him on his arm she said, "Peeta, trust me. You don't have anything to be embarrassed about." She paused for just a moment and giggled. "You can take that any way you want." Snuggling up to his back, she gave him quick peck on the shoulder. "Good night, Peeta. Sweet dreams!"

Peeta buried his face underneath his pillow, trying not to laugh, and overdramatically groaned. "Good night, Glimmer."


	4. Chapter 4 - The Morning After

**Title:** Slow Dancing  
**Chapter:** Four  
**Rating:** M  
**Genre:** Romance/Drama – Modern AU  
**Chapter Characters:** Peeta Mellark, Glimmer, Cato  
**Author's Note:** Some of you may have noticed that I pulled chapter four down shortly after posting. My apologies for doing so and taking a while to replace it. I have been writing chapters from Katniss' point of view as I was writing Peeta's. This was mostly for myself as a matter of keeping details of the story straight, but also to help flesh out in my mind what Katniss is to me. I feel that switching POV over to Katniss was a little disruptive after three chapters. I also think I may have overplayed my hand by giving you her point of view. In light of this, I have decided to continue the story strictly from Peeta's perspective. I plan on releasing the chapters I wrote from Katniss' point of view as outtakes once the story as a whole has been completed. I thank you for being understanding and your continued readership.

I also now have an account on AO3 under the same user name.

* * *

Peeta awoke to a dull ache in his head and a- a girl wrapped around him? Taking a look around at the largely unfamiliar room, events from the night before came flooding back to him. He could feel the sweat pants that Glimmer had given him bundled at his feet. Just to make sure he remembered everything correctly, he lifted the bed sheets, praying that he still had something on.

"_Okay, I still have my boxers on at least," _Peeta thought to himself. Glimmer was snuggled into his side, but had thrown an arm and a leg over him in the night. She was snoring softly, and stirred slightly while he tried to untangle himself from her. Quietly he tiptoed out of her room and into the living room. Locating his pants, he pulled them on, pulled his phone back out of the back pocket, and reviewed the messages from the night before.

"Finnick is going to lose his shit when I tell him I crashed here tonight," he muttered quietly. He reread the messages from Katniss several times, not really knowing what to make of them; the dance, the failed attempt to kiss him, the kiss on the cheek, and now an invite to call and go see her perform. "_What was her angle? Why the sudden renewed interest in me? Was it a matter of being out of sight and out of mind, and seeing me threw her off?" _shaking his head, he took in a deep breath and blew it out.

The clock on the wall caught his eye. It read 11:34, and he figured it was the perfect time for brunch, his stomach growled in agreement. A quick survey of the contents of her pantry and fridge gave him the idea to make chocolate chip pancakes with a side of bacon. He thought about making mimosas, but he realized that it would probably not pair well with the pancakes. Not to mention that he wasn't sure how expensive the bottle of champagne Glimmer had on hand was, so he opted for the safe route of coffee.

Shortly after finishing the bacon he heard Glimmer speak up from behind him, "You're actually making me breakfast and I didn't have to put out? That's nice for a change."

He gave Glimmer a nervous laugh, "Um, you're welcome? Take a seat; everything should be done in just a minute. May I get you a cup of coffee?"

"Coffee would be wonderful," Glimmer said as she hopped into a seat behind the bar area. "Mugs are in the cabinet to the left of the sink."

Opening the cabinet he reached in and pulled out two mugs, "How do you take it?"

"The same way I like my men; blonde and sweet."

Her comment gave him pause. "I guess it's a good thing I'm not sweet."

"Careful, Peeta. If you keep making comments like that I think your nose is going to start growing," she said, snickering.

"That might be true, but it's not going to be my nose that's getting bigger," he said with a mischievous smile that quickly turned to laughter.

In between giggles she managed to say, "If you could manage to keep a straight face, I might have taken you seriously."

He shrugged and rubbed the back of his neck. "Such is life, right? Okay, one blonde and sweet coffee coming up. I hope you're a fan of pancakes, because that's what I'm making."

"You bet your ass that I'm a fan of pancakes. Give me a full stack, and don't be stingy with the chocolate chips."

After breakfast was over and the dishes put away Peeta pulled his phone out of his pocket, opened the message entry from Katniss, and handed the phone to Glimmer. "So what do you make of this other message?"

She took the phone from him and read the messages. "Well, to be honest, I'm not really sure what to say. If you take the messages as they are, and forget about running into her at Haymitch's, I'd say she wants to see you. I mean, that part is obvious, but I think her going from 'call me' to 'I'm playing a show tonight and I'd like you to come out' is a little tricky."

Glimmer pursed her lips and rubbed her chin. "Are you one of those people that uses his phone as a phone, or do you mostly send text messages and only call people if you have to?"

"I generally only call people if I have to, and mostly just for work. I like talking to people face to face. The phone just feels so impersonal to me, especially if you have to talk about something important."

Glimmer nodded her head. "Well, that might explain the second message. Avoids the awkwardness of a phone call after all this time. Plus you'd be out in public. Maybe she's trying to get you comfortable with the idea of physically seeing her again? Maybe the talking can come later? I can't guess what's going on in her head aside from her wanting to reestablish contact. To apologize, to ask for you back, to be on friendly terms? No idea.

"This is one of those gray areas where it seems like the only way you're really going to find out is to either call her or go see her. Though I think if you didn't do either today she'd probably try to get in touch with you again. I'm just curious on what your thoughts on all of this are."

Peeta gave Glimmer an uncertain frown and slouched his shoulders. "I… I don't really know. I had resigned myself to the idea that things were over. That whatever she felt for me wasn't enough when compared to Gale. I never went Jolly Green Giant on her, I tried to be understanding of their history, tried to give her time to sort things out, get some closure since he was finally back.

"I won't lie and say I haven't been pining for her the entire time, I had just accepted that she didn't want to be part of my life. It was hard seeing her last night, not being about to run up to her and hug her, to kiss her," his voice hitched, and he took a deep breath to steady himself.

"As much as I love her, there's still some bitterness underneath it all. To love someone so much, to give everything you have, for things to be more or less perfect, and then to have it gone in the blink of an eye? That she didn't even want to try to work things out or save what we had? I think that burns me more than the idea of her kissing Gale.

"We haven't said one word to each other in almost four months. All of this, after seeing me once is a little overwhelming. Parts of me want her back so bad, but even if she swore off Gale, said she made a huge mistake, and threw herself at my feet begging forgiveness… I don't know if I could just open my arms to her. Well, I know I could, I just don't think it's wise.

"It hurts too much, to ignore everything that happened. I think it's something that would constantly be at the back of my mind if we didn't deal with it before trying a relationship again, if that's what she is after."

Glimmer nodded, "I think her intentions are the big question right now. Though there's a good chance that she doesn't even know herself, given the alacrity with which she sent those text messages. Also the time, I mean the bar did close at two. She waited almost two hours before she sent them."

"Maybe it took her that long to get the courage to do it?" Peeta interjected.

"Or maybe she just drank enough that it sounded like a good idea. Who really knows?" Glimmer scrunched her face and then placed her hand on Peeta's arm. "So, do you think you're going to go see her tonight?"

"I don't know yet. Part of me wants to, the other part wants to build a castle, dig a moat, withdraw the bridge, and arm the battlements."

She patted his hand, "You can't withdraw and hide your emotions behind a wall. All that's going to happen is that eventually you'll run out of supplies and you'll begin to starve because you never confronted the threat at your gates. There's a difference between a tactical retreat and running away. One is designed so that you can live to fight another day; the other is just being a coward.

"I think you've already made your tactical retreat by leaving her alone for a while, and she has raised a flag indicating that she wants to parley. It's time for a frontal assault while her guard is down," she said as a wicked smile crept across her lips.

Peeta sat up and pushed himself back from the table. "I never took you for a military strategist."

Glimmer laughed, "In the immortal words of Pat Bennetar, _love is a battlefield_."

"Excuse me for a moment." As he walked down the hallway towards the bathroom he found himself humming a few bars from the song before he snapped himself out of it. "I think that song is going to be stuck in my head all day now."

Glimmer called back, "There are worse things that I could get stuck in your head."

Just then Peeta's phone beeped and a message appeared on the screen:

**Delly Cartwright – 1:05pm**

**Peeta, it's after 1. I went out to lunch with Annie and Finnick, and your bike is still at the bar. Now what kind of trouble have you gotten yourself into? **

Glimmer hit the reply button, then the button to send a picture. She pulled her tank top down to expose more cleavage, pushed her arms together, and took a close up picture of herself. "And send."

**Delly Cartwright – 1:07pm  
****PEETA MELLARK, YOU'VE GOT SOME EXPLAINING TO DO!**

**Finnick Odair – 1:07pm  
****Those do not appear to be Katniss' tits. *High 5* Call me later.**

_**To: Delly Cartwright  
**__**SORRY! I thought I hit the button for the front camera to take a picture of myself to let you know I was okay. I attached the picture before I looked at it.**_

**Finnick Odair – 1:07pm  
****Remember: no glove, no love!**

**Delly Cartwright – 1:08pm  
****Uh huh…**

**Finnick Odair – 1:08pm  
****Also, there's no such thing as butt babies.**

Glimmer rolled her eyes at the last message and mumbled, "Classy."

Peeta walked into the kitchen a moment later. "So Commander, have any ideas for a battle plan?"

Glimmer turned to face him, "As a matter of fact, yes. Delly and Finnick just sent you a couple of messages. I also launched Phase One of the attack." She handed Peeta back the phone.

He scrolled back through his messages, eyes going wide when he saw the close up picture of Glimmer's cleavage. "You sent that to Delly? Oh god, no wonder she sounded pissed."

Glimmer cleared her throat. "Sorry, I couldn't resist. I saw her talking with Katniss and Rue last night. It made me wonder if she conspired with them to get you on the dance floor. It's a little crude, but this will help create the illusion that you aren't desperate."

He frowned, "But I'm not desperate…"

"I know that, but does everyone else?"

"Um, I… I don't know," he stammered.

"Exactly my point. Now what are the odds that word of you going home with someone will now get out?"

Peeta crossed his arms over his chest, "Finnick won't say anything to anyone other than Delly and Annie, and that's only because they are there with him. Plus you didn't send him the message directly. Annie isn't prone to gossiping. Delly, will probably let it slip unintentionally the next time someone asks about me."

"That's pretty much what I figured. Okay, we'll see how the trickle down effect works for a few days, unless you want me to show up with you at the Pit tonight? We could grab a booth and have a few drinks together. That would really get people talking. I'd also be curious to see how Katniss would react to that."

"I never said if I was going to show up or not."

"Peeta, you and I both know that you're going to go see her play tonight, so you might as well drop the act. I also happen to go to the Pit on a regular basis, it's not going to look like I'm appearing out of the blue."

"You don't think it's being a little petty by showing up to her gig that she invited me to, and then giving all of my attention to another girl?" he asked.

"Think of me more like a wingman; ready to swoop in and cause a distraction if you need me. I need to work a while this evening, and I probably wouldn't be able to get there until 10:30 anyhow. That gives you plenty of time to settle in, and I can pull off the _fancy meeting you here _routine if necessary. I'll keep my distance otherwise."

Peeta nodded, "Okay, I think I can work with that. I'll see if Finnick wants to come too. That might make it look like less of a set up since he seems to have something against you."

She grinned, "I think he's bitter that he gave me his number and I never called him. He used some cheesy line about he knew a bunch of photographers and publishers, that I should be a model."

Peeta snickered, "You do realize that he used to do a lot of modeling himself right? He's retired for the most part, but he does talent scout for a few agencies. He's probably bitter about missing out on a commission if he had gotten you signed. Finnick isn't exactly used to rejection. I'm sure in his younger days he probably used his connections to his advantage. Now, well, Annie made an honest man out of him. I just don't think Finnick knows how to turn his overly flirtatious manner off."

"Oh, so he wasn't coming on to me? I feel a little silly now." She shook her head and then looked at the clock. "How about we get dressed and I take you back to your bike? I need to run a few errands and then get ready for work."

"Sounds good to me."

Peeta gathered his things and watched tv while he waited for Glimmer to finish getting ready to go. He didn't have to wait very long before she was walking out of the bedroom, keys in hand. They made their way towards the front door.

Cheerily she said, "Peeta, you are welcome back any time, especially if you feel like cooking."

"Maybe next time I spend the night I'll make us some cookies," he said as he opened the door. Out of the corner of his eye he saw a large man who looked like he was in the middle of trying to knock on the door as Peeta was opening it. "Oh, hey Cato, what's up?"


	5. Chapter 5 - I Don't Need No Doctor

Chapter Five: I Don't Need No Doctor.  
Chapter Summary: "Peeta exposes his vulnerable side."  
Author's Note: Friendly reminder that I replaced Chapter 4 with a completely new version that is not from Katniss' POV.

* * *

"The next time you sleep over?" Cato said, anger boiling in his tone.

Cato was at least four inches taller than Peeta, and probably outweighed him by close to forty pounds. While Peeta exercised regularly and was in good shape, Cato looked like he spent a large portion of his leisure time at the gym throwing weights around.

Peeta snapped out of sizing Cato up a moment too late to realize that a fist was flying towards him. His vision exploded in a flash of white to match the pain spreading across the left side of his face. As he staggered back a few steps to get out of Cato's reach, points of light danced in his vision. He tried to open his mouth to talk, then grunted in pain as he felt his jaw click back into place. Peeta put his hands up, in an act of supplication "Cato, it's not what you think. I was dr-," he started to say as Cato's right leg came swinging towards him in a roundhouse kick, taking him in the side.

"Cato, what the hell are you doing?" Glimmer shouted.

"Beating the ass of this pretty boy who thought he could get away with fucking my girl."

"Cato, nothing happened, he's just a friend and you have made it abundantly clear to me on every occasion that you're not my man. Don't think for a second that I don't know about you fucking Clove," Glimmer said through clenched teeth.

Cato looked at Glimmer with a shocked expression on his face, "Shut up, slut."

Peeta capitalized on the distraction. He charged Cato and angled low.

"How much did he pay you to fuck hi-?" Cato was cut off as Peeta's left shoulder collided with his mid-section.

He wrapped his arms around Cato's legs and lifted, picking him up and bull-rushing him out the door. Peeta took several elbow strikes to his back before they crashed onto the grass. They landed awkwardly, but Peeta dealt out two solid punches to the ribs before Cato managed to scramble out from underneath him.

They squared off again, circling each other counter clockwise. Between the kick from earlier and the stance that Cato kept adopting, Peeta got the impression that Cato had some degree of martial arts training. Peeta had experience with wrestling from both high school and college, but this was an entirely different situation. Thanks to his brothers Peeta wasn't unfamiliar with brawling, but his strengths lay in getting up close to his opponent, and from there he could execute different holds and joint locks to great effect. The way Cato kept bouncing on the balls of his feet made Peeta think that Cato was going to attempt to utilize kicks to fight him at range, not allowing him to get in close. If Peeta could predict when Cato was going to throw a kick, he might be able to get in close and get him into a grapple.

Peeta decided to test his theory and made a feint like he was going to shoot in low on Cato again. Just as he predicted, Cato's right leg shot out, trying to kick Peeta in the head. Cato was big and strong, but not particularly fast. Peeta also noted that Cato's arms dropped when he threw the roundhouse, something that he had also done the first time that he had tried to kick him. You never let your guard down in a standup fight, a competent fighter would know that, and should have had it trained out of him.

After a few more attempts to poke holes in Cato's defense, Peeta figured that Cato relied mostly on his size and strength to fight, more than skill. He was sloppy, but still a dangerous opponent. Peeta took a few quick steps towards Cato, looking like he was going to make another attempt to rush him. Cato shifted his weight in anticipation of the charge, not expecting Peeta to change his tactics. Instead of going low, Peeta kept himself upright. As Cato's leg came around, Peeta grabbed Cato's wrists, throwing them to his right side. This tactic overbalanced Cato as well as leaving his head and neck completely exposed. Peeta turned into the kick, grunting hard as Cato's knee caught him in the side. Hooking his left arm behind Cato's right, Peeta then reached past Cato's right shoulder, bringing his right arm around and under Cato's throat, and then laced his fingers together. Using Cato's right shoulder as a fulcrum, Peeta pushed against it, which applied more pressure to Cato's throat.

Cato struggled against Peeta, but he couldn't break his grip.

"Cato, you can either settle the fuck down or you're going to take a nap," Peeta said, grunting with exertion.

Cato only growled in reply and continued to struggle. In a matter of moments Cato went limp, and Peeta let him crumple to the ground. Cato gasped for air and clutched at his throat. He was soon wracked by a violent fit of coughing.

Peeta turned back towards the door and addressed Glimmer, "Sorry. I just couldn't take him talking to you like that, and I wasn't going to keep letting him hit me."

She nodded and walked towards him "You don't need to justify yourself, he deserved it." She looked down at Cato, who was still lying on the ground and coughing. "Now as for you-"

"Fuck you, whore. We're through," Cato managed to croak out, in between fits of coughing.

"Well if that's how you feel about me…" she said, as her foot connected with his balls, "how about you get the hell out of here before I call the cops."

Cato eventually managed to crawl back into his car, spewing profanities the entire way.

"Well, I guess that takes care of that," Glimmer said, a slight tremble in her voice.

Peeta tentatively put an arm around her. "I really am sorry. I didn't expect all of that to happen."

She turned into him, accepting his embrace and laying her head on his shoulder "I know, Peeta. It's not your fault. I know it looked bad by most people's standards, but I think any rational person would have at least heard us out. He attacked you without warning. Prick." She gave him a slight smile and then a big hug; Peeta winced in pain and she let him go. "Oh god, I didn't even think to ask if you were okay. You weren't complaining, so I jus-"

"It's fine. I didn't want to whine after what you just went through. I think I'll be all right, but I'm sore as hell."

She frowned at him. "You don't have to play it tough. Let's go back in the house and put some ice on your face. It's starting to swell."

He acquiesced, following her back inside. They went into the kitchen and she pulled out a few freezer bags, filling them with ice.

"I never thought I'd say this to someone when I wasn't trying to get them in bed, but take your shirt off."

Peeta did as he was told, groaning softly as his arms came up. He could see that he had a large bruise forming on the left side of his rib cage where he had been kicked. He poked at himself gingerly, trying to determine if anything was broken. Aside from a few spots that were a little tender, he thought he was in the clear.

Glimmer handed him an icepack then walked around behind him to look at his back. "You've got a couple of small bruises on your back, but they don't look too bad. Is there anything else that hurts?"

He turned to her and with a whimsical smile, held up his elbow and pointed at it with his other hand.

She poked him in the side, "I don't think so, Dr. Jones. Now go lay down on the couch for a few minutes."

"Oww! Okay, okay. I'll go lie down for a little while, but I should get home soon."

"Are you going to be able to ride like this?"

He flexed his hands and rotated his wrists, then stretched out on the couch. "My right hand is a little sore, but it shouldn't keep me from riding. If it gets too bad I can always hit the throttle lock to give my hand a rest."

"Sounds good. Let me check my email and then we'll leave."

He settled in on the couch, but found it difficult to find a comfortable position because of the ice packs he had placed on himself. After a few minutes he heard Glimmer typing away furiously in her bedroom, swearing to herself loudly.

"Is everything alright?" he called from the couch.

She walked back into the living room. "Everything will be alright, but I just had two appointments cancel. My scheduling fee is non-refundable if they back out, so it's not like I'm losing any money. They're just really big tippers, and I'm a little disappointed. I was hoping to use the tip money to go splurge at Sephora. I really wanted to buy the Naked 2 palette, I need a new bottle of mascara, and…"

Peeta started to tune her out.

"… and a really fat ten-inch dildo that I can shove up your tight little ass."

He jumped a little and looked at her.

"I didn't mean to bore you with my love for makeup. I thought talking about banging you in the ass might get the glossy-eyed look off of your face."

Peeta blushed, "Sorry. I didn't mean to be rude. The pain is grabbing most of my attention at the moment."

"Nice cover. Speaking of your pain, time to take the ice packs off for a little while," she said, reach over to remove the pack covering his face. "Well, good news, it doesn't look like you're getting a black eye yet."

"I'd hate to try and explain that to Katniss tonight. So, since your, um, appointments cancelled does that mean you'll be out earlier?"

She thought to herself for a moment. "Katniss is supposed to go on at nine, right? I'll get there before ten. She'll probably be finishing her opening set by then. I'll send you a text before I come down into the Pit to see how things are going. Sound like a plan?"

He nodded and then stood up. "Works for me. We can hammer out the rest of the details on the way back to Haymitch's."

* * *

They pulled into the parking lot and stopped next to Peeta's Triumph. He climbed out of the car, and then suddenly turned around. "Crap, I almost forgot, I don't have your number."

She smiled, "I already put it in your phone. See you tonight. Send me a message when you get home so that I know you made it alright."

"I'll do that. Thanks again for last night, and for helping me out. I really appreciate it." He shut the car door, walked up to his motorcycle, and began untying the straps for his helmet. He then heard someone clear their throat behind him.

"Well isn't this just rich. A nice little dance and a smooch from Katniss, then you go home with a different girl. I didn't think you had it in you, Peeta."

_Shit. This is the last thing I wanted to happen,_ he thought to himself.

"Johanna, this isn't what it looks like. I just crashed on her couch because I was too drunk to drive. Nothing happened." He put his helmet down and spun on his heel to face her.

Johanna opened her mouth to say something and then cocked her head. "Damn, Peeta. If I had known you liked it that rough I'd have hit on you months ago. That's a nice little shiner on the side of your face."

"That's courtesy of Cato. He didn't want to hear what I had to say either," he said, somewhat frustrated.

"What'd he do, catch you two in the act," she said with an evil grin.

"No. We were walking out the door of Glimmer's place when he showed up. He didn't ask for an explanation, he just attacked me."

"Sounds like something he'd do. All things considered, you don't look too bad." She put her hands on her hips. "So tell me Peeta, what are we going to do about this little situation?"

Crossing his arms over his chest, he asked, "What do you mean?"

"Well, I could tell Katniss that I saw you getting dropped off here at three in the afternoon, or…" she trailed off.

"Or what Johanna? Is this the part where you blackmail me?" he shook his head. "Go ahead and tell Katniss if you want. I did not have sex with Glimmer by any definition you could come up with, Scout's honor." He threw his leg over the side of the motorcycle and strapped his helmet on. "Now if you'll excuse me, I really need to get home."

She put her hand on his shoulder, which he immediately shrugged off with a wince. "Relax, I'm just fucking with you."

He flipped up the visor of his helmet and gave her an annoyed look. "Johanna, sometimes you take things a little too far. If rattling people's cages is the only thing that makes you feel happy anymore, I feel really sorry for you. I know that you're Katniss' friend, but remember she left me. Even if I did sleep with Glimmer, or anyone else, I'm single, and it's not your or Katniss' business."

"Well, I guess you're telling the truth. You wouldn't be this pissed off, and you probably would have used some of that famous charm on me if you were trying to cover something up." She looked down before continuing. "You're right though, you're single, you're free to do what you want. I'm still going to judge you for hanging out with skanks like her though."

"It's pretty funny to hear that coming from you, given how many people you go home from the bar with. What'd Glimmer do to you? Did she cock block you and go home with someone you had your eye on? Is it the way she dresses? That her breasts are so much larger than yours? Have you even talked to her for more than five minutes?"

"Okay, okay. I'm the pot that's calling the kettle black, I get it. It's just, just." She sighed, trying not to be flustered. "The problem is that I could actually see you two getting along really well, and if you move on…" She folded her arms and growled in frustration. "I know you're still in love with Katniss, and believe it or not, she still cares for you." She looked around as if trying to decide whether or not to tell him something. "God damnit," she mumbled to herself. "I- I know this is a lot to ask, but can you keep something between just you and me?"

"Wha, What?" he said, bewildered. He thought for a moment. "It depends on what it is, Johanna."

"This is important Peeta. I'm not joking around, and I'm not playing games. If you really want to know why I'm giving you so much shit, and trying to direct your attention back towards Katniss, I'll tell you."

He took in a deep breath, and let it out slowly. "Johanna, maybe it's best if I don't know for right now. My head is still spinning from last night, and I really need time to think about what happened before I see her Katniss again. Knowing some big secret may hurt more than it helps." He slapped the visor of his helmet back down and started the engine of his motorcycle. With a quick flick of his wrist, he waved and then pulled out of the parking lot.

Johanna wrapped her arms around herself and watched Peeta drive away. "I'm in love with Gale," she said quietly.

* * *

Peeta put the kickstand of his bike down and quickly ran from the driveway to his front porch. He had been caught off guard by a thunderstorm, and by the time he arrived home was soaked to the bone. Once inside he quickly rid himself of his wet clothing, turned on the stereo in his living room, and his way into the guest bathroom.

Opening the medicine cabinet he poked around through its various contents trying to locate the old bottle of Percocet that was left over from his accident. Noting that he still had four left, he broke one pill in half and put the bottle back into the cabinet. Taking a moment to look at himself in the mirror he saw that the left side of his ribcage had a lovely patina of bruising. The left side of his cheek was red and slightly raised, but didn't look particularly worse from when he had left Glimmer's townhouse.

He walked into the kitchen, pulled a Yeungling out of the fridge and quickly downed its contents along with the pill. He made two ice packs and then grabbed another beer out of the fridge. Holding one ice pack in place with his upper arm, he awkwardly held the other pack to his face, took another drink from his beer and walked out of the kitchen.

He did a spit take, ice packs falling to the floor, juggling his beer in the air as he heard someone yell out "NICE COCK, MAN!" quickly followed by "Annie, avert your eyes, I don't want you to think me a lesser man by comparison. Delly, you've seen him naked plenty, do what you want."

Peeta froze as his embarrassment set in. "_Great, I'm beat up, wet, cold, and shriveled; hardly impressive by anyone's standards in my current state." _Peeta thought to himself.

Annie was peeking through her fingers, taking in the sight of Peeta's nude body. Delly, blushing and trying to act nonchalant, punched Finnick lightly on the shoulder when he doubled over in laughter.

"Jesus, Finnick! Don't you know how to knock, or at least let a guy know when you're going to come over? How'd you know I'd be home anyway?" Peeta said, trying to not angry.

"Since when have I had to knock?" Finnick said, with a million-dollar smile on his face. "We saw you hauling ass home trying to beat the storm. I thought we'd come check up on you and get caught up with the events of last night."

Interjecting, Delly spoke up, "I'm glad we did. What happened to you? It looks like you got in a fight."

Taking a moment to cover himself, Peeta replied, "That would be correct." He chewed on his lip briefly before continuing, "Give me a minute to throw some pants on." He spun on his heel and climbed the steps up to the second floor where his bedroom was located.

Delly followed him up the stairs and into the bedroom. Peeta was sitting on the edge of the bed his shoulders slumped in defeat. He looked up as Delly walked in and gave her a weak smile.

"Hey."

She closed the door, walked up to him, coming to a stop between his legs, and pulled him into her chest. "Peeta, are you okay? I'm not just talking about the bruises, I mean are you really okay?"

Taking in a deep breath he blew it out slowly and let his arms encircle Delly. "I- I really don't know. Katniss really caught me off guard last night. I thought we were going to do the civil thing and not talk to each other all night. I really didn't expect her to come up and ask me to dance."

She ran her fingers through his damp hair and then kissed him on the forehead. "I'm so sorry Peeta. I'm somewhat to blame about that."

He turned his head up to look at her, a confused look on his face.

"When I went over to talk to her and Rue. I suggested that she should go talk to you. At least say hello. I figured that it might be awkward, but I knew it would mean a lot to you if you could at least get on speaking terms again. I didn't think she would do something like that. I actually thought she had given up the idea to talk to you when she cut-in. I thought it was a little brash, but I didn't want to cause a scene. I feel really bad now."

He squeezed her tightly before letting go, and crashing backwards into the bed, one arm outstretched on the mattress, his other hand covered his face. "It's okay, Delly. I know you meant well."

"I think that whole scenario took everyone by surprise."

"Why'd she kiss me?" he said quietly, and mostly to himself.

She looked down and saw that his jaw was trembling. If his hand wasn't covering most of his face she was certain that she would see tears welling in his eyes. She moved herself out from between his legs and lay down next to him on the bed.

"I don't know what to tell you, Peeta. Maybe the first attempt was due to familiarity? It felt right to her? I can't say. Maybe she has a lot of unresolved feelings for you?"

His breathing faltered. "I was hoping you'd just say drunk and not thinking clearly."

She turned to him and put an arm across his chest. "That too I suppose. I'm sorry, I guess I didn't help at all."

"Delly, don't say that. It's not your fault. I just haven't gotten over her. I think that's why it's so frustrating; too many what ifs."

"Peeta, you're going to drive yourself insane if you endlessly brood on this. How about you get some rest and we can talk more later? I'll go get your ice packs and then we'll leave."

He only nodded.

She patted him on the stomach and then gave him a light kiss on the chest before standing.

Peeta crawled towards the head of the bed when he stopped and turned around. "Hey, Delly. Will you send Finnick up? I need to talk to him for a minute."

"Yeah, I'll send him up with the ice packs." She stopped and then walked over to his dresser. She reached into the top drawer, pulled out a pair of boxers and tossed them to him. "I think you'll want these."

He caught them with one hand and then chuckled. "Oh, right. Still naked."

Delly blushed and bit her lip as she nodded. "Yep…" She turned to open then door and started to walk back down stairs.

As he was pulling on his boxers he called out to her, "Will you get him to bring up my cell phone? It should be in the front left pocket of my riding jacket."

She acknowledged his request and then continued down the stairs.

A few minutes later Finnick came into his bedroom, two ice packs and two beers in hand. He handed Peeta the items and then fished Peeta's phone out of his pocket and tossed it down onto the bed. "What's up? Delly said you wanted to talk to me for a minute."

"Yeah. I was curious if you had plans tonight."

"Nope. Annie and Delly were gonna stay at their place, watch Bridesmaids, or something. Did you have something in mind?"

Peeta reached over and grabbed his phone. He pulled up the messages from Katniss and then handed him the phone. "What do you think about that?"

Finnick read the messages, his eyes going wide. "Shit, man. You know I'll be your wingman any time, but are you sure you want to do that? You're looking pretty rough right now. Maybe you should sleep on it."

Peeta picked up his beer and knocked it against Finnick's. "Nothing ventured, nothing gained, right?" He took a sip, put his beer down and then scratched his head. "I'm gonna go one way or another. She invited me out. It's not that I feel obligated to go, I'm just really curious. I was hoping that maybe I could talk to her when her set is over. Maybe figure out what is going on with her."

"Is Gale going to be there? I'm not sure you're fit for another fight today."

Peeta shrugged. "I don't think she'd invite me out if he was going to be there. He didn't come out last night, so he's probably at the base this weekend."

"Well, I'll break a bottle over his head if he is there and tries to start some shit."

"My hero." Peeta blinked a few times and then shook his head. "This Percocet is starting to kick in."

"Dude, you took a Perc and you're drinking with it?" Finnick picked up Peeta's beer and frowned at him. "All right, you take a nap and sleep that shit off. It's still going to be raining tonight, so I'll come back over here around eight to pick you up."

"Thanks. I'll give you some money for gas when you get back."

"Don't worry about that. See you at eight. How about you wear a shirt with buttons on it for a change, maybe a tie? I may want to go up to the Palace and they won't let me bring you in if you're looking like a slob. No offense."

Peeta stretched his arms and then yawned. "None taken. Okay. See you at 8. If I don't answer the door, just come on in."


End file.
